So what is public diplomacy all about? The basic idea is that in order to achieve a wide range of goals—­from economics to military—you need to get support of ordinary people. Whether the goal is to convince foreign publics that the rise of China poses no threat to the international system, or to persuade the so-called “Arab street” to shed its anti-Western beliefs, public diplomacy is called upon to work its miracles.

Entitled A Snapshot of Public Diplomacy, the mailing gives reports on public diplomacy (PD) activities underway around the world. The most recent issue I’ve received, covering the last two weeks of July, reports on support by the Bureau of African Affairs of an NGO called the Idea Builders Initiative.

The secretary for public affairs is expected to be a nodal post dealing with visa issues, Haj issues and other publicity and public diplomacy matters. The new secretary would also be responsible for aligning the four divisions within the ministry to ensure smooth functioning.

Cilliers said after the election that Dlamini-Zuma’s candidacy for the AU seat was pursued with such valour in order to facilitate South Africa’s greater campaign for permanent representation on the UN Security Council. “The South African campaign for a permanent seat on the Security Council is particularly important to (DIRCO) Minister Maite Nkonae-Mashabane,” he explained.

Having myself fired a few arrows at Dr Singh and the ruling Congress Party last month, I thought I would turn to an area where India is enjoying success: the projection of its soft power abroad. Here, arguably, it is outstripping China, its Asian Century rival.

This past week, the Iraqi Communications and Media Commission ordered the closure of 44 foreign and domestic media outlets in the country. Among them was the Voice of America, a U.S.-run news organization and quite possibly our biggest public diplomacy tool.

The smear campaign against the Romanian Cultural Institute (ICR) has deepened and worsened.... which may soon result in a shift of political control over ICR from being overseen by the Romanian Presidency to the Romanian Senate, a new communiqué...is accusing ICR of “financial and legal irregularities” as well as “dysfunctional aspects,” without actually offering any tangible evidence.

The United States will not be able to maintain its global advantages if the country fails to craft policies that maximize information-age soft and hard powers.... But before defining an ideal high-tech foreign economic policy, one has to recognize that, as often as not, the sources of most policy lay in particular economic interests.